All the fun of the festival – Aria di Festa 2018 highlights

The sun shone on Aria di Festa 2018 as tens of thousands of visitors flocked to our small town …

Events

The sun shone on Aria di Festa 2018 as tens of thousands of visitors flocked to our small town of San Daniele del Friuli at the end of June for our annual prosciutto festival.

Despite the threat of rain, the centro storico (Old Town) sparkled in the sunshine as local shop owners, businesses and prosciuttifici (prosciutto producers), showed off their wares while visitors celebrated local produce from morning until late into the night.

The ever-popular annual tastings and courses, organised by our Consortium, were dedicated to the art of serving, pairing and preserving Prosciutto di San Daniele, and revealed to guests the best way to enjoy our prosciutto without losing anything of its rich taste.

Restaurants and cafes laid out special menus in honour of the festival, with Prosciutto di San Daniele featuring in a variety of creative and delicious ways, while the secrets that have been handed down to families for generations were revealed by our prosciutto masters, who satisfied visitors’ curiosity on guided tours of the different prosciuttifici headquarters.

And then there was the music and entertainment- all evening in the main square and in corners around the town, bands played and people danced in the moonlight, under the stars.

There were numerous spaces in the historic town centre to enjoy prosciutto, simply twisted on a grissini breadstick or draped on some bread, combined with cheese, melon, figs or pickled vegetables, or added to pizza or pasta.

Although Aria di Festa, as we know it today, officially started in 1985, the traditions behind it stretch back for decades, if not centuries.

In times gone by, businesses of the area would celebrate local commerce by setting tables outside their shops for a few days a year to showcase local produce and advertise their goods.

The tradition became so popular that it continued, growing each year and decade as more and more people attended and took part. And so Aria di Festa has developed naturally over the years, based on the traditions of the town and its people.

From meetings and debates to craft demonstrations, concerts and sightseeing tours, our streets thronged with people between 22-25 June this year, all gathered together to celebrate life, culture, music, friends, family and food.

Sadly, that’s it over for another year. Arrivederci Aria di Festa San Daniele 2018!

We’d love to see you for Aria di Festa next year in 2019. Come and join us, everyone is welcome!